The overall objective of this research program is to develop a flexible route for the synthesis of vinblastine, a potent chemotherapeutic agent used for treating Hodgkins disease, choriocarcinoma acute leukemia in children and other malignant conditions. The low natural abundance of vinblastine, and paucity of simpler analog testing, make this an important objective. It is intended to develop the chemistry to make the components in a chiral form, and to link the two alkaloid units together in a simpler form at an early stage. In this way, complicated dimeric indole alkaloids, with a similar topology to natural vinblastine, can be made and biologically evaluated en route to vinblastine itself.